In the 1960s, the NAACP was among the loudest critics of the policy by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at the time to exclude Black members from its all-male priesthood and its temples.
In 2018 — 40 years after the church had eliminated the policy — national leaders of the country’s oldest civil rights organization held a joint meeting with top Latter-day Saint officials.
The groundbreaking alliance of the two organizations produced donations, scholarships and humanitarian initiatives. It was directed by then-church President Russell Nelson.
Now the church has a new president, Dallin Oaks, who has urged members to “root out” racism and famously called “Black lives matter” an “eternal truth all reasonable people should support.”
So what has the partnership accomplished, what is its current state, and what are expectations for the future?
On this week’s show, NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson answers those questions and more.
